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Heaven has gained a beautiful little angel and he will be greatly missed by us all and our other little soldier is still fighting strong

Jade Darby

Maureen Labbett, 77, also revealed her granddaughter, Pc Ferdinand, 31, was so devastated by events she is yet to return home.

She said: "Daniel-Jay is not too bad at the moment.

"He is having lots and lots of tests done - he has a lot of injuries to his leg, arm and face and has been placed into an induced coma.

"He is extremely strong. At one point last week he had opened his eyes and said his mother's name but I don't think they could let him stay conscious in that state.

"Jade has been with him the whole time - she is a wonderful mother, absolutely wonderful."

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Daniel-Jay suffered wounds to his face, legs and armed when he was attacked by his auntie's dog

The pensioner from Dovercourt, Essex, has been left devastated by the attack on the afternoon of October 13.

"I am still in utter shock. I just want to be with them and I can't.

"I am so touched and thankful to people for their support and everyone is trying to get through this.

"There are times when I keep shaking but I am strong and I have to stay that way," she added.

Mrs Labbett confirmed what Pc Ferdinand also said - that the killer dog had never shown any signs of aggression before it struck.

She added: "That dog was absolutely fine up until then - it was completely out of the blue.

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Archie Darby was tragically killed in a mauling by the dog, which ripped him from his mother's arms

"Clare cannot go back in the house at the moment, she is so devastated."

The inquest into Archie's death held at Essex Coroner's Court in Chelmsford heard for the first time the shocking details of the attack.

Essex Coroner's Officer, David Dinnell, opening details of the case, said: "Archie Darby was a four-month-old baby being held in his mother's arms when he was taken out his mother's arms and attacked the family dog."

Police and ambulance workers were called to the scene but Archie, nicknamed Archie Bum, could not be saved.

A post mortem was carried out at Great Ormond Street Hospital in London where the provisional cause of death was given as 'severe head injuries consistent with a dog attack."

Essex Police confirmed last week they are not treating the incident as a crime and no arrests have been made.

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Daniel-Jay called for his mother after waking up from an induced coma

Archie's devastated parents released a tribute following the attack which sent shockwaves through the community.

They said: "Our beautiful sons Archie Joe Darby and Daniel-Jay Darby are so, so loved by us all and were such happy little loveable boys.

"It doesn't seem real that our little Archie Bum has gone to heaven and our little Daniel is in intensive care because of a tragic, tragic incident involving a dog attack.

"We have lost our gorgeous little four-month-old baby and our beautiful 22-month-old boy is currently being treated for his injuries.

"Heaven has gained a beautiful little angel and he will be greatly missed by us all and our other little soldier is still fighting strong."

Pc Ferdinand also issued a statement and said: "I am making this statement on behalf of my husband and I.

"I am a serving Essex Police officer, but more importantly I am a wife, a sister, a daughter and an auntie.

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Archie's devastated parents released a tribute following the attack

"We are still struggling to comprehend the circumstances we find ourselves in, having lost our gorgeous Archie Bum and seeing Daniel fighting on.

"We cannot believe this has happened, and would never have risked the lives of our precious nephews.

"It was our dog that did this, and we will have to carry that burden and learn to cope with it."

The dog which carried out the attack has since been put down.

A police spokeswoman said: "An examination of the dog's body has found nothing that could explain why the attack happened.

"Essex Police is not treating Archie's death as suspicious and an investigation of the facts continues."